Mortgage rates are likely to rise – so what does this mean to you and your home lending?

Applying for a home loan is a bit like applying for a new job. The better your application is presented and the more organised you are, the greater your chances of success are in obtaining a home loan. So how do you improve your chances of getting approved for a home loan? Here are a

If you are a Kiwisaver member then you may be able to qualify for the member tax credit. To get the full Member Tax Credit from the Government you will need to contribute at least $1,042.86 before the 30th June 2014 to your Kiwisaver (conditions apply). If you contribute less than $1,042.86 from your pay then

A recent article in Stuff stated that: “New Zealanders place more value on their house and car than they do health and family if current insurance trends are anything to go by.” A good way to think about this is Objects versus People. Objects include your car, home and contents whereas People covers your ability to work, health and family.

Most of our current conversations are ‘Do I fix or do I refinance?’ What does this mean to you in terms of paying your mortgage? To refix with your existing bank gives you the bargaining power to get a good discount due to loyalty To refinance opens up your prospects of a change to

Surprising to us at SMART that seventy-five per cent of Kiwi mortgages are either floating, or fixed for less than one year. The one year being offered is an attractive rate to the eye, however thought needs to be made on what sort of market you are then expiring into. The “word on the street”

There’s been media attention recently about a pensioner who didn’t have enough savings to bury his wife. Imagine dealing with the stress of losing your lifetime partner as well as trying to find a way to pay for their funeral. Did you know that some Life Insurance policies allow you access to enough money to pay for

Fantastic news for a client of SMART. A prospective client had an existing life insurance policy for a number of years. When we called on this prospective client they raised the matter that they were off work for up to 6 months due to a car accident. I asked the client whether they made an

Did you know that the reserve bank restrictions of limiting the lending to 80% of the value of the property only applies to the registered banks in New Zealand? This ruling was not to stop homebuyers from being able to borrow money but to help stabilise the lending portfolios of New Zealand registered banks from

With the reserve bank looking likely to introduce LVR restrictions to 80% of the property value, this would mean that purchasers would need to have a deposit of 20% to purchase a property or does it? It would be fair to say that most new home buyers would struggle to have up to $100,000 or

Imagine the possibilities of living debt free. Travel overseas, start a business, work part time, spend more time with the family, purchase investment property, renovate your home are just a few that come to mind. The possibilities are endless. SMART can help you achieve it. Let a SMART adviser review your home loan for you,